@jbtaylor on tech

So this morning, Deutsche Telekom reported quarterly earnings. And DT CEO Rene Obermann toed the party line when it came to the prospects for AT&T completing its planned takeover of T-Mobile.

Obermann said, "We remain convinced that we will be able to keep to our timetable for the transaction and that we, together with our partner AT&T, will ultimately receive approval for the transaction—after all, the sale is positive for the U.S. mobile communications market and consumers."

Okay.

Except AT&T already filed documents at the Securities and Exchange Commission pushing back the expected close of the transaction.

Maybe AT&T's lawyers didn't tell Obermann. He does seem to trust them a bit too much -- maybe he should listen to his CTO instead. Even though the DT PR shop doesn't trust him that much these days on anything related to AT&T any time soon.

In his New York Times column today, James B. Stewart, lays out a very clear argument why the Justice Department will win its lawsuit against AT&T and Deutsche Telekom which seeks to stop the takeover of T-Mobile.

An attorney by background, Stewart is a former reporter with the Wall Street Journal and a former editor of Page One for the Journal. He's also a past executive editor of American Lawyer magazine and a founder of the Wall Street Journal's Smart Money. Oh, and he's won the Pulitizer Prize.

His conclusion about AT&T's proposed takeover of T-Mobile: "If ever there was a merger likely to be blocked on antitrust grounds, this is it."

p.s. The photo above is of Deutsche Telekom's CEO Rene Olbermann and AT&T's CEO Randall Stephenson. I took this shot before a House Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee hearing held earlier this year. 

Today the Federal Communications Commission received an avalanche of public comments from consumers opposed to AT&T's bid to takeover T-Mobile. Over 28,000 consumers have weighed in so far, nearly all against this proposed transaction.

The Commission also received several "Petitions to Deny" the merger, including one from Sprint.

This morning's Wall Street Journal took note of the growing opposition to the T-Mobile takeover in a story which ran on the front page of the Marketplace section. The story clearly angered AT&T's top lobbyist, Jim Cicconi, who claimed to the Journal that support for the deal is growing.

AT&T hopes you believe that. That's why Cicconi penned this blog post saying that support is growing.

The problem is, no one believes it. Reporters I work with tell me that they see AT&T's support for what it is -- nothing that is truly coming from real grassroots.

Reporters just don't believe Jim Cicconi or AT&T. Neither do members of Congress.

Just look at this photo I shot of Congresswoman Maxine Waters during the Congressional testimony of AT&T's CEO Randall Stephenson and Deutsche Telecom's CEO Rene Oberman.

I don't recall exactly what they were saying when I took the photo during the hearing, but if you could see my face right now, my expression would be a lot like the Congresswoman's.

Over the coming days, I will try to highlight some of the other petitions to deny that the FCC has received, I will also try to explain some of the arguments in our pleading which asks the FCC to block the takeover of T-Mobile.

But for now, I'm heading home.

But stay tuned for more details about why we think the FCC and the DOJ must block AT&T from gobbling up T-Mobile.